It’s here! It’s finally here! Spooky season has arrived and I could not be more excited! Halloween is a jumble of emotions for me. It terrifies me, and I hate all things scary… yet I wait for it with pure excitement every year. I don’t like dressing up, but I LOVE seeing everyone's costumes and I even help with makeup and with costume ideas… but I don’t partake in dressing up. I love trick or treating, but I don’t want to eat the candy. Ok, maybe that part isn’t true - give me ALL the Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups and Snickers bars please! I did start loving Halloween a bit more and engaged in the decorating and festivities when I had kids. Kids have a way of making things so much more special and magical. So now, Halloween is something I look forward to every single year...CONTINUE READING
Please be sure to let us know how you liked the blog in the comments!
This past month I was able to attend the first Portland Jigsaw Masters (PJM) speed competition in Oregon. The event was sponsored by Pomegranate which we all know and love and Portland Puzzle Company, which is a very small brand from the area. The competition was from August 2nd to 4th and had individual, pairs, teams and mini sprint competitions. I competed in all but the sprints and thought I’d share my experience with the puzzles with you all!...CONTINUE READING
Please be sure to let us know how you liked the blog in the comments!
Want to be inspired? Better yet…want to inspire others? That’s exactly what my mission was in creating my puzzle wall of inspiration. I work at a high school as a school counselor. One day I when I walked past the huge, blank wall in my office I had an idea. But, before I get to that, this is what my wall looked like...CONTINUE READING
Please be sure to let us know how you liked the blog in the comments!
As I’m writing this blog, it’s September 1st – shortly after the midpoint of Labor Day weekend. After a gray, cloudy morning, the sun has peeked through the clouds to say hello before Sunday draws to a close. Though the season doesn’t officially end until later in September, Labor Day is that last backyard party punctuation of summer fun before the reality of fall comes crashing into our lives.
Even though I’m long out of school at this point, this period at the tail-end of summer always reminds me of back to school season. In high school, that meant buying school supplies – new pencils, notebooks, a backpack, maybe even a new pair of shoes. In college, that meant picking up textbooks for a brand-new set of classes and moving back into a dorm room. I went to college at NYU here in the city, and every time I walk around Washington Square Park (the epicenter of the university’s campus life), especially around move-in day, I get a rush of nostalgia remembering those heady days...CONTINUE READING
Please be sure to let us know how you liked the blog in the comments!
In honor of National Elephant Day on September 22nd, I’ve had an elephant in my room, on my puzzle board, all month long!
My love of elephants harkens back to my grandmother who always had elephant statues in her home. They had to have their trunks up and be facing the door, which according to her - and Vastu Shastra, the Indian science of architecture - brought good luck and guarded the home against negative energy. How a French Canadian woman who had never been abroad in her life knew this is beyond me, but one of the few keepsakes I have of her is a wooden elephant that I keep facing the door!...CONTINUE READING
Please be sure to let us know how you liked the blog in the comments!
A few months ago I looked through my puzzle stash and realized I had several from a manufacturer whose puzzles I had never tried. There they were, in the middle of the stacks, hiding in plain sight. I don’t know why I took so long to get to them, but I’m glad I finally did...CONTINUE READING
Please be sure to let us know how you liked the blog in the comments!
Hello there! Last month while meticulously researching my post for National Dog Day, I noticed there were so many puzzles depicting dogs in the bathroom and, honestly, bathrooms in general that they might warrant their own post.
You might think the things we do in the bathroom are a bit, uh, personal. But is it any more personal than riding a unillama while eating handhelds in rainbow space? So, fair warning: bathrooms ahead. And not just any bathrooms. Puzzle bathrooms...CONTINUE READING
Please be sure to let us know how you liked the blog in the comments!
I really enjoy playing video games, but as someone who generally likes to multitask, gaming isn’t usually my go-to hobby these days. So in preparation for National Video Game Day (September 12), I did what any good puzzler would do: I put together video game–themed puzzles! ...CONTINUE READING
Please be sure to let us know how you liked the blog in the comments!
I’ve never been a full-fledged philatelist, but I’ve enjoyed collecting stamps since I was a kid, mostly to decorate scrapbook pages and journals. Since I’ve always sent lots of cards and letters, traveling postcards, and have had quite a few pen pals over the years, picking a special stamp for the envelope is just another fun way to express myself. My friends are amused at how often I manage to coordinate the design on the card, the stamp, and all my embellishments on the envelope!...CONTINUE READING
Please be sure to let us know how you liked the blog in the comments!
